Tag: Virtual currency

Interestingly enough, this is not Facebook’s first foray into digital currency as back in 2010, they unsuccessfully tried to launch Facebook credits, …

Analysts from Barclays have predicted that the potential cryptocurrency from Facebook could bring in up to $19 Billion by 2021

The coin would most likely be a stablecoin

While this will be their first crypto, Facebook has previously attempted to launch a digital currency

Many mainstream firms have dipped their toes into cryptocurrency, with the latest being JP Morgan which announced the upcoming launch of their JPM coin a few weeks ago. However, few firms are being watched by the crypto community as closely as Facebook, from the rumors of them launching their own coin that circulated last year to their recent acquisition of Chainspace.

While there has been no official news from Facebook about their rumoured token, analysts continue to speculate. The latest piece of information is from a Barclays analyst who claims that the should Facebook launch its own coin, it will be extremely profitable.

This information comes courtesy of Barclays internet analyst Ross Sandler, who said in a client note that the hypothetical coin could bring in as much as $19 Billion by 2021. At the very least, Facebook could see a revenue increase of $3 Billion through the launch of a successful crypto offering:

“Merely establishing this revenue stream starts to change the story for Facebook shares in our view.”

That estimate was made by considering the current revenue from Google’s digital distribution service, which brings in about $6 per user.

The persistent belief is that the coin will work as a global payment initiative that will be backed by the US dollar and will be tied to their popular WhatsApp messenger. The use of the dollar to back up the coin will be an attempt to combat crypto’s volatility, especially in light of the bear market. It will also be a way to stay on the good graces of investors, who were irked last year following the Cambridge Analytics scandal that rocked the company. “Any attempt to build out revenue streams outside of advertising, especially those that don’t abuse user privacy are likely to be well-received by Facebook’s shareholders,” Sandler said.

Interestingly enough, this is not Facebook’s first foray into digital currency as back in 2010, they unsuccessfully tried to launch Facebook credits, in which users would pay for virtual currency with fiat currency and spend it in-app.

The issue, at the time, was that the company could not deal with the exchange costs. Now, the digital currency market is more mature which Facebook will likely take advantage of.

Apart from definitions of basic terms, the bill’s most concrete requirement is that “before accepting payment by a digital currency, a person must verify …

A bill proposed by the Texas legislature will require that all receivers of cryptocurrency in regular transactions verify the identity of the cryptocurrency sender before accepting any payment. If passed, the measure will go into effect on September 1, 2019.

In its current form, the text of the bill itself is brief, providing very few clues as to how such an ambitious task will be carried out. Apart from definitions of basic terms, the bill’s most concrete requirement is that “before accepting payment by a digital currency, a person must verify the identity of the person sending payment,” with an exception to be made if both parties are already using “digital currency that allows the true identities of the sender and the receiver to be known before a person has access to another person’s digital wallet.”

The bill also lays some vital groundwork for developing the tools to eventually carry out this plan. It indicates that, if passed, it would have “the Texas Department of Banking, Credit Union Commission, Texas Department of Public Safety, and State Securities Board” collaborate to develop the identification tools, and in cooperateion with law enforcement agencies.

Regulators in several countries have had an ongoing struggle to reckon with this technology and integrate it into their financial regulations and legal systems. This Texas bill, for instance, could be incredibly difficult to enforce, even with the cooperation of several regulatory agencies, given the censorship-resistance of cryptocurrency transactions.

Instead of trying to police the development of cryptocurrency, other states have attempted to accommodate cryptocurrency into their state’s financial business laws. On multiple occasions, Wyoming, for example, has shown a willingness to become a regional hub for crypto-asset businesses. In February, the state’s legislature enacted two cryptocurrency laws, one that allows individuals and businesses to directly own crypto-assets without needing an intermediary for custody, and one that deems that “virtual currency is intangible personal property and shall be considered money.”

As a somewhat incredible cross-party cooperation in these politically fractious times, many crypto-friendly initiatives in Wyoming received bipartisan support, with bills being proposed jointly by representatives from both major parties.

… is confiscated, the USMS wants to hire an agent or contractor to maintain a “complete and accurate accounting of USMS virtual currency inventory.”.

The United States Marshals Service (USMS) has started the search for a contractor to deal with the custody and disposal of cryptocurrency that has been confiscated as part of USMS investigations. The agency has published two public documents outlining what services the crypto manager will need to provide, including the storage and disposal of crypto assets.

In its first published document, the “performance work statement,” the USMS details its involvement in the Department of Justice’s Asset Forfeiture Program and its work to seize assets “that are either the proceeds of, or were used to facilitate, federal crimes.” In the event that cryptocurrency is confiscated, the USMS wants to hire an agent or contractor to maintain a “complete and accurate accounting of USMS virtual currency inventory.”

The statement describes the full range of confiscated-crypto management the USMS expects the contractor to provide, which includes accounting services, audit compliance, management of blockchain forks, wallet creation, token transfers, and disposal. For disposal, the USMS clarifies that the seized crypto will either be exchanged for fiat, exchanged into a more liquid form of virtual currency and then sold, or returned to its owner.

Auctioning off the cryptocurrency will be another disposal option. Last year, ETHNews covered an October 2018 auction in which the USMS sold 660 bitcoin seized during multiple criminal investigations. The bitcoin was sold in six separate bundles of 100 and one bundle of 60. According to the performance work statement, these instances of disposal are rare, but the USMS still expects to sell “large seizures” via a sealed-bid auction.

In its second published document, the “quality assurance surveillance plan,” the USMS outlines the evaluation system it will use to track the contractor’s performance. According to the document, the agency will employ a contracting officer (CO) and a contracting officer’s representative (COR). The CO will work to ensure the manager is acting in compliance with their USMS contract. The COR will work on the technical side, informing the manager about problems that arise.

Along with specifying that the contractor must provide their own labor and equipment, the performance work statement notes that the confiscated-crypto manager is expected to be under contract for 12 months, with two optional 12-month extensions.

“IGNATOV and IGNATOVA allegedly convinced victims to invest in OneCoin based on complete lies about the virtual currency.” “IRS Criminal …

The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York has charged Konstantin Ignatov and his older sister Ruja Ignatova with running “a multibillion-dollar pyramid scheme” through OneCoin, a cryptocurrency they helped found in 2014.

Ignatov has been arrested, but his sister remains at large. The pair is accused of orchestrating a multi-level marketing network that persuaded consumers to buy OneCoin packages that had no real value.

Bulgaria-based OneCoin allegedly rigged prices, sold nonexistent coins, and didn’t even have a true, verifiable blockchain to manage the virtual currency.

“As alleged, these defendants created a multibillion-dollar ‘cryptocurrency’ company based completely on lies and deceit,” Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said in a statement. “They promised big returns and minimal risk, but, as alleged, this business was a pyramid scheme based on smoke and mirrors more than zeroes and ones. Investors were victimized while the defendants got rich.”

Defrauding investors

Investigators say OneCoin, which is still running, was created with the sole purpose of defrauding investors. Between 2014 and 2016, OneCoin made about €2.2 billion ($2.5 billion) in profit, according to the US Justice Department.

“This is an old scam with a virtual twist,” IRS Special Agent in Charge John R. Tafur said in a statement. “IGNATOV and IGNATOVA allegedly convinced victims to invest in OneCoin based on complete lies about the virtual currency.”

“IRS Criminal Investigation is committed to investigating cryptocurrency scams in an effort to protect the American public and bring cryptocurrency crooks to justice,” Tafur said.

The uncovering of the alleged scheme serves as a reminder to consumers that multi-level marketing and tiered referral systems are red flags, especially during a time when officials are still trying to figure out how to regulate virtual currencies.

The tweet stated that: “Guess where we will have a new fiat-to-crypto … a social network for investors and traders opened its virtual currency trading …

According to a recent report, in response to a previous report regarding the agreement between the government of Argentina and the Binance Labs to co-invest in blockchain projects which the exchange supports, the Chief Executive Officer of Binance, Changpeng Zhao hinted that the exchange intends to launch a new fiat-to- Crypto exchange in the country.

Binance Labs is the Investment and Social Wing of the Exchange

The intention was revealed by the CEO via the exchange’s Twitter account. The tweet stated that: “Guess where we will have a new fiat-to-crypto exchange?”

The tweet was in reply to a recently published article concerning the agreement between the government of Argentina and Binance Labs.

Binance to Launch in 8 Countries

A previously released report containing a spreadsheet revealed that the exchange is planning to launch fiat-to-crypto exchanges in eight more countries “Uganda— which launched in October — and just-live Jersey, Singapore, Malta, South Korea, Liechtenstein, Argentina, Russia, Turkey and Bermuda.

Following this, a report which was released in January however did stated that one of the representatives of the exchange when asked where these new exchanges will be situated refused to confirm six of the alleged locations but only confirmed plans for Singapore and Malta. It was also confirmed that the Bermuda plan is still under consideration.

With the exchanging launching in Jersey Europe, it is clear that the brand is set on dominating the crypto exchange industry. According to previous report, the newly launched exchange was a product of an MoU signed last year by the Exchange and the base country.

In January also, Binance formed a partnership with Simplex which is a payment processor in order to show its support for the buying of crypto using a credit card.

eToro Opens Virtual Currency Trading Services in the U.S

In more recent news, eToro, exchange a social network for investors and traders opened its virtual currency trading services in the U.S. The exchange intends to trade 13 unspecified crypto assets and launch a virtual currency multisignature wallet to its over 10 million in 32 U.S. states and territories.